Fushigi Yuugi: Kingdom of Death
by noda21
Summary: An exchange student friend of Miaka's is pulled into the book to become the priestess of a strange new kingdom. The Susaku and Seiryuu warriors must team up to defeat this new evil. Can the two teams coexist?
1. Prologue

author's note: okay, this is my first fanfiction attempt, a Fushigi Yuugi fanfic of course! I belonged to an rpg at one point and made a storyline for it. This follows the same kind of storyline but all the characters are of my creation. Oh and I have like 11 stories on fictionpress (so don't think this is my first story! hee hee!) This is kind of alternate universe in that none of the original characters are dead. Please review! I'd REALLY appreciate it! (I'll try to review some of your work too!)

**Prologue**

The figure sat alone in the dark room, face turned upwards. Her long white hair glowed silver as power began to fill her. She breathed in, slowly, deeply and prayed to the gods, or specifically, to one god.

A deep voice sounded in the room. A voice unlike any other heard on this Earth. A voice that had the power to change everything forever.

"It is almost time. Soon the Priestess will descend upon us. Soon the warriors will be gathered. And soon. . ."

The woman's voice finished the sentence. "You will be free once more."

The deep unearthly voice continued. "The creator's work will be undone. And death shall prevail. Soon, all will be ours."

The voice faded as did the glow surrounding the woman. Slowly she rose to her feet, obtaining her full height. "All will be ours," she echoed. A laugh erupted from her in the darkness, a sinister laugh, one that knew what was to come. . . and welcomed it. "All we require is the Priestess."

Long strides brought her to the door, brought her to opening it. And she stepped out into the welcoming night. "The great Shinigami will return to power once more."


	2. The Exchange Students and Weird Dreams

_author's note: thanks for the review! (and I know it's short . . . needed to have a somewhat creepy intro, lol) Anyways, here's the next chapter, the real first chapter. . ._

**CHAPTER ONE**

Twirling her hair around her finger, lost in thought, she continued to write. A moment later, a smile spread across her face and she set the pen down. Stretching her hand, she reread her answer for the essay, pleased with how it had turned out. Since there was still time remaining, she glanced around the classroom. None of her other classmates were done yet. Of course, that was to be expected. After all, this was a Japanese school and this was English class.

Her blonde hair swished slightly, curtaining her face as she relaxed in her chair. Her eyes, a vivid blue, stared up at the ceiling. It was so different here than from back home. Thinking about her home in the United States, she glanced to her left and saw her friend set his pencil down too.

His mahogany hair had been cut recently in a new Japanese style. His hair was in his face in the front and sides and tapered down to blunt ends in the back at the nape of his neck. His melted chocolate eyes were on hers a moment later and he smiled at her. Smiling in return, her attention was caught by a disapproving look from the teacher.

She quickly turned her attention back to her completed test. She and Liam were exchange students from the United States and had been here for two months already. Thinking about this, she glanced slightly to her right and saw her Japanese host student. Her mouth was pursed into a grimace as she frantically scribbled, looking confused. Her red hair was up in her usual buns, her eyes intent on her work. "Uh oh," she thought, "Looks like Miaka's not doing too well..."

Her eyes drifted past Miaka to rest on one of her other classmates, the quiet guy that Liam was staying with. His name was Ryo, she knew, but she couldn't recall ever hearing his voice. As she was thinking this, his head suddenly came up and turned, his eyes meeting hers. A deep gray they were, intense on hers. She broke the gaze, lowering her head. "How weird," she thought, shaking her head slightly. She rested her chin on her fist and prepared to be bored.

After the test, she exited the room, feeling kinda sleepy from not having anything to do. A hand grabbed her arm and she jumped slightly. A male laugh from behind her made her turn and punch her friend in the shoulder. "Jeez Liam! Why did you have to go and do that!" she exclaimed. When his laughter continued, her eyes narrowed. "Just you wait! I'll get you back for that!"

"Ugh..." came a voice from behind him. "I bombed that one..." Miaka trudged out of the room with a crushed look on her face. "My mom is going to kill me!"

"Oh, Miaka... don't worry, I can tutor you if you need me to." The petite blonde girl smiled at her outgoing friend, speaking perfect Japanese.

"Thanks Rika, you're so nice! But my mom is still going to kill me," depressed, she continued on down the hallway and Rika followed her with Liam trailing.

Trying to think of a way to cheer her friend up, they started outside. Rika's sapphire eyes lit up as she spotted a familiar face that was sure to make Miaka happy. "Hey Miaka, look who it is."

Miaka muttered, "What?" Then she looked up and a grin split her face. "Taka!" She ran down the rest of the stairs and into his arms. Rika and Liam continued down more slowly.

"Hey man," Liam said with a wave.

"Good timing," Rika smiled, "Miaka was just beating herself up over an English test."

"Hi guys!" Taka grinned, shifting his arm so that it was over Miaka's shoulders, holding her to his side. "That's not so unusual."

"Hey!" Miaka interjected, poking him in the side. "That was mean!" She was smiling as she said it though.

"Well its true." He paused, playing with Miaka's hair. "So, how did you two do?"

"Oh, fine. No problem." She smiled at him and Miaka. They made such a cute couple. He was older than her, 18, and was attending the local university with Miaka's brother Keisuke and his friend Tetsuya.

"Of course she wouldn't have a problem! She's bilingual remember!" Miaka pouted. "Between you and Yui, I'm the idiot."

"No, you're not Miaka. That is me." Liam pointed at himself as he spoke. "My middle name is idiot."

"Oh, hi Ryo." Rika followed Taka's gaze to see Ryo watching them intently from the school steps.

"Oh well then, I guess we better be going." Liam flashed them all a grin and then started off with Ryo, who hadn't said a word.

"He's kinda weird, isn't he?" Rika asked in an undertone as the two walked away.

"Who? Ryo? Well he's never been that outgoing and he doesn't have many friends. It seems like Liam gets along with him though... now... how about we go get a bite to eat..." Miaka's stomach grumbled.

"Uh oh.." Taka laughed and the three started off.

As Liam and Ryo walked off, Liam turned to Ryo. "Hey, why don't you ever talk to them?"

"I guess I just don't feel comfortable doing so." Ryo's voice, low and deep drifted out of the skinny teen.

"Well, that's strange man, just go up and talk next time. I think Rika thinks you're some kind of freak or a mute." Liam's dark brown hair blew into his face due to the wind. "Anyways, I'm gonna hang out with her later at one of the cafes. Do you want to come?"

"Nah, I have work to do," Ryo stated, spacing his words out to not have them come out in a rush.

"Oh okay, but you know what they say about all work and no play..." Liam made puppy dog eyes at his friend.

"Next time, I promise," Ryo laughed. It wasn't hard to like Liam, he was quite likeable. He was the kind that drew people to him just by smiling. At times, Ryo wished he was like that too. Ever since he had been a small child he had been ostracized by the other kids for being different. Well, he had come a long way since then, but he still felt like an outsider, and for obvious reasons. As his friend started chattering on about what they should do over the weekend, Ryo followed him, nodding slightly. Having a friend felt nice.

_The next day..._

"Are you sure you don't want to come with us man?" Liam snagged his sunglasses and a hat to shield his eyes from the bright early summer sun.

"I'm sure. You go and have some fun." Ryo gave him a smile and then watched him as he left. Only then did he allow himself to relax. He moved to his bed and lay back on it. He felt horrible, he had only had a few hours of sleep. Then again, that was quite a bit considering he had had the dream again.

Ever since Liam and Rika had come, he had horrible nightmares. All of them were of Rika in some strange place. A woman wearing old-fashioned black and white armor with long blindingly white hair. There was something about her that spoke to Ryo, something about her that made him very uneasy. Other dreams were of Rika unconscious, or of her in pain. He could never quite figure out where she was though. As such, he had never really worried about it, until now. He had seen her, crystal clear in his dreams. She was opening some book and a strange black light enveloped her, then just as suddenly she disappeared.

He had an especially bad feeling about the last one. As such, he decided he'd find out some more information. Since Rika would be with her friends, she'd be fine. They hadn't been with her in the dream, vision... whatever...

Satisfied that Liam would be safely away by now, Ryo rose, put on some shoes, and headed out. First stop, the National Library.


	3. Left behind? Uh oh

_Author's note: Thanks for the reviews everyone! They make me feel good… hee hee… Anyways, I'll try to update this soon after this one. I can't make any promises because I have 10 other stories on fictionpress that all need writing. Writer's block for me meanstime to start anew story. Oh well,enjoy this chapter!_

**Chapter Two**

"Guys, I'm gonna go buy a soda, okay?" Rika smiled at her friends. Miaka, Yui, Taka, and Liam were there with her. They had just gotten out of the movie theater and were heading to the shopping district to spend a little cash.

"Sure, hurry back!" Miaka was her usual vivacious, happy-go-lucky self, even more so since she was with Taka.

"Hold up, Rika, I'll go too." Liam wrapped an companionable arm around her shoulder as they headed over to the soda machine. Rika dug out some yen and put it in the machine and took out her soda. As she waited for Liam to do the same, she turned, leaning against the machine, and looked back at their friends. They seemed to be engaged in some conversation. Rika smiled at them, wistfully, happy for them.

"What's the smile for?" Liam raised an eyebrow at Rika.

"Oh, just look at Miaka and Taka. They are so much in love and you can just see it when they were together." Rika shifted her attention to Yui who was laughing at Miaka. "And when you see Yui and Tetsuya together too. Its like they have a special bond." She sighed wistfully, "I wish I could find someone like that."

"Oh hell yeah! Um.. I mean, me too... a girl that is... man what I would do then..." He dodged Rika's half-hearted slap and smirked. Then his face became more serious as he looked back at their new friends too. "But seriously, its like they all have some special bond. They are just so tight. They aren't anything like students in the US, and they are even different from those here too."

"Yeah..." There were times when Rika felt like an outsider among her own friends. She always seemed to be walking in on some conversation that they always hushed up. It was frustrating. The same thing happened when she and Liam headed back over.

"Hey Taka," Liam began, "how about we go check out some manly things while we're here." He punched Taka's arm.

"Sounds good." He smiled then turned to Miaka. He hugged her and kissed her forehead. "Now you stay out of trouble, okay? See you in a little while."

The boys headed off and the girls grinned at each other. "First thing," Yui announced, "Shoes!" Giggling, they ran off toward the nearest shoe store.

A little while later, they were walking along, chatting when a purse in a store window caught Rika's eye. "Hey guys, I'm gonna go check out that purse, kay?" Miaka waved at her to give her the go-ahead and continued talking. Rika dashed into the store.

Five minutes later, she exited with a bag in hand and saw... no one she knew. "Miaka? Yui? Where are you guys!" She sighed and leaned back against the store wall. "They forgot about me..." Now she felt even more like an outsider than earlier. She tried to shrug off the feeling but it was still there. That and the feeling of restlessness that had been plaguing her for the past few days. She decided to head in the direction they had gone in to see if she could find them. She started off down the street, alone.

After ten minutes of fruitless searching, she spotted a large building in the distance. "Well, might as well go see if its anything good." As she neared the building, she was able to identify it as the National Library of Japan. "Oh well..." Then she noticed that the building had some high steps, maybe she could see them from up there. She dashed up and looked back out over the crowds. Nada. Shaking her head, she turned around and looked at the library doors. "Might as well check it out..." for some reason, she felt like doing so...

----------------

"How could you have just forgotten about her like that Miaka!" Yui stood near her friend at the entrance to the store where they had left Rika.

"Me! You were there, too Yui!" The truth was, Miaka felt horrible. Her friend may have already been there for two months, but she was still a foreigner. She didn't know where she was going. And it really was her fault for getting too caught up in her conversation with Yui.

"But I wasn't the one she told!" Yui paused and took a breath. "Never mind who's fault it was, we need to find her!"

Spotting a woman handing out fliers on the side of the street, Yui approached her. "Excuse me, did you see a short blonde girl wearing a green skirt go walking by?"

The toothless old woman seemed to be thinking. Then she blurted out, "Yes! She went that way." She pointed back the way they had come from.

"Are you sure?" Yui was skeptical as to this woman's integrity.

"Of course I'm sure. Would you like to buy some candy though?" The woman gave her a toothless grin.

"Sur-" Miaka began, eyes already wide over the candy. She was reaching for her wallet when Yui grabbed her arm and tugged her along, calling a thanks over her shoulder.

"Miaka! This is no time for your stomach!" Yui continued to pull her along through the crowd, looking around for Rika.

After going a block, she dragged Miaka over to another older woman. With thinning white hair and a cane, the woman had stationed herself outside a store. As such, Yui figured she'd know who went past.

"Excuse me, ma'am. Did you happen to see a short blonde girl around my age wearing a green skirt walk by?" Yui had her fingers crossed, hoping that the woman had seen her.

"Well let me see..." The woman appeared to be lost in thought. "Wait I think.. No... Wait... hmm... no." She continued to think but Yui had heard enough. Starting away, she was surprised when the woman suddenly said, "Yes! Yes I did. It was a few minutes ago."

"You did!" Yui was pleased. "Where did she go?"

"Umm..." Yui waited patiently for the woman to continue, though she was getting a little annoyed. Miaka was trying to get to the food in the store behind the woman and was pulling at Yui's restraining arm. Then the old woman said, "Oh yes, she went towards the library. Over there." She pointed towards the library and Yui took off, Miaka in tow.

"Thank you so much!" She called this over her shoulder as she quickened her pace towards the library.

"Why did she go to the library?" she wondered aloud.

"Maybe she was going to study." Miaka had finally gotten her mind off food, for the moment. The library had always interested her. After all, the first time she had gone in, she had gotten sucked into a book!

"Maybe, but wouldn't she had told us?" Yui was curious as to why her friend had gone to the library. Maybe it was just because they had never taken her there. It was a pretty impressive building so maybe she couldn't pass up going inside. Yui had a bad feeling about this though. A very bad feeling.


	4. Into the book!

_Author's note: thanks for the reviews all… it would be nice to have more though… lol. Here's where the story really gets started… and Ryo gets even more of a part. grins (can't help it, I love my own characters…)_

**Chapter Three**

So far, Ryo had not found anything to help him. He had been so sure that in his vision Erika had been in the library. Nothing looked familiar. He strained his mind, trying to remember the name of the book she had been holding. Something about gods and a universe. He had fruitlessly searched for it on the library computer catalog. Now he was looking through the stacks, wondering if he would be able to find it. Then again, if the book didn't exist, then the dream was just that, a dream. Pleased with that thought, Ryo decided to find a book for himself.

Stooping to look at the names of books lower on the shelf, he didn't see Rika enter behind him. "So this is the National Library." It was an interesting place. Rika wondered why Yui hadn't shown her this. Miaka had probably never set foot in the building, but Rika was sure the intelligent Yui would have. "Oh well. They must have a good reason." It seemed that they had a good reason for everything, even if they liked to keep those reasons between themselves. Why did they always make her feel like an outsider? Oh well, she was new. Perhaps it would just take a little more time.

Rika continued inside, gazing around her at all the books. She had never seen so many books in one place before. Wondering if she could find some in English, she headed to one of the many computers to search the lists of books. Finding one that she was interested in, she started off towards the back of the library, where it said it was located.

At that instant, Yui and Miaka entered the library. "Now we have to find Rika," Yui gazed around and spotted Ryo searching the racks, but no Rika.

Miaka was way ahead of her. "Ryo?"

Ryo turned around, startled to see the two of them. "Hello Miaka. Hi Yui. What are you doing here?"

"Have you seen Rika err… Erika?" Yui asked, "Miaka lost her and we heard she had come in here."

Ryo's mind went blank. Could it be? But, he hadn't found the book! It was a dream, wasn't it! The book didn't exist. Miaka and Yui had never had experiences inside it like he had seen… it was all a dream! "Erika? Rika's here!"

"Yeah, or so that old lady said," Miaka smiled at the geeky friend of Liam. "You haven't seen her?" She just wanted to find Rika and go get some food. Why had she wandered into the library? It was one of the few places where food wasn't readily available! It didn't occur to Miaka to wonder about their own connection to the library.

"Miaka," Yui turned to her friend. "Isn't it obvious that he hasn't?" Miaka may not have wondered but Yui did. Whenever she entered this library, she thought about the book. It seemed very odd that Rika had just happened to go in there, but she rationalized it. The library was the biggest building around, it probably just caught her eye.

"I just wanted to make sure, Yui." Miaka stuck her tongue out at her friend.

As the two began to squabble, Ryo had a bad feeling come over him. "Rika . . ." He saw her in his mind, walking toward the back of the library, opening a door, finding a book. His eyes widened and he began to half run to the back of the library. He had a feeling he knew where she was. And he hoped he wouldn't be too late.

-----------------

Rika had journeyed to the back of the library to find a book. Now though, she couldn't seem to locate it. She found where it should be, but it wasn't there. "It didn't say it had been checked out. . ." Looking at the other shelves, she suddenly felt a cool breeze from behind her. And a noise, like something falling on the floor.

Turning around, she tried to find where the noise and breeze had come from. There was no one around. Spotting an open door, she moved to it, pushing it open slightly. "Hello? Is anyone there? I heard a noise." When no answer came, she pushed the door open more fully.

She found herself in a small book room. The walls were lined with books. Old books, by the looks of them. Many were coated heavily with dust. Some of the titles she couldn't even read. In the middle of the room was a work table, also covered in dust. There was no one there.

Brows knit, she stepped inside and looked around again. "Strange." Then she spotted a book lying on the floor. "Hmm? Was this what made that noise?" She reached down to pick it up. It was cold, very cold.

Shivering once involuntarily, Rika shook her head slightly. What was that? It must just be because the whole setting was a little creepy and the book was cold because it was on the floor. That's it. She looked down at the cover. She could read it. "The Universe of the Four Gods," she read, "translated by Einosuke Okuda." She knew the author's name. He had been a great Japanese writer in the early 20th Century. Intrigued, she opened the book. . .

Ryo spotted the door from his vision, cracked slightly open. "Dammit!" He threw the door open and raced in. He recognized this room, but not from his vision moments ago, from his nightly dreams. If this was his dream then…

Turning slowly to his right, he saw Rika . . . holding a book. Ryo was stunned and afraid. Then he acted on instinct. "Rika! Rika! No! Don't!" He lunged toward her to snatch the book away. This was his dream! He couldn't let it happen though! He was meant to stop this!

Miaka and Yui, having followed Ryo (while giving each other quizzical looks over his behavior) poked their heads into the room. "Oh Rika! We've been looking for you, where did-?" Miaka broke off, her eyes on the book in her hands. "Rika!"

Ryo's hands were just inches from the book, from the startled Rika, when it happened. At that instant, black light filled the room, obscuring the vision of all. When he could see again, Ryo's face fell, as did his body. Sinking to his knees, Ryo continued to look at the spot where she had been. He was very pale, almost ghost white, though disbelief still showed on his face. He closed his eyes as his failure really hit him. "No, I. . . I was too late."


	5. The Great Shinigami

_author's note: Thanks for the reviews! Oh and you're not imagining things Cheetara... and the fifth god, what animal... actually hasn't thought about that I've been thinking more in an abstract sense for now... I'm glad everyone likes the story! Keep reading!_

**Chapter Four**

Meanwhile… inside the book…

A silver haired woman paced back and forth across the floor of her very dark, very empty room. "Those damn seishi..." She continued pacing after muttering this. Her armor shifted as she moved. The breast plate and shoulder guards were heavy, but she had grown used to them. She wouldn't part with them for the world. Her moonlight-colored hair fell straight down the back to her waist, her one point of vanity. Her eyes, dark gray, seemed forever to be filled with anger and dissatisfaction. They certainly were now as she felt the impatience that had grown very intense in the past few weeks.

All of her life thus far had involved waiting... waiting and being patient. She was just about out of patience. She wanted to strike back, to right the wrongs that had been committed. A crack of lightning brightened the room for a moment, seeming to reflect her inner turmoil and highlighting the dusty, dank furnishings. A lumpy mattress on the floor and a small wardrobe that held more armor were the highlights of the room. Typical feminine things were no where to be found. She spent her hard-earned money on more important things, infinitely more important things.

She abruptly stopped pacing. Something strange was going on. She could feel it.Sooneverything would change...it had to be soon, the waiting was just about over.

The woman's thoughts abruptly changed as strange sensation coursed its way through her. Was it time? Was it finally time? Thena voice spoke inside her head, a voice she had been hearing since she was a child, the voice of the great Shinigami...

"Indeed it is time. She has come; our priestess has arrived. I trust you to find her and convert her to our way of thinking," the deep sinuous voice whispered. The woman's lips curved as she heard this. It was time. She would soon be free to do as she chose.

She stopped pacing and moved to the window to look out at the darkness."I will find her, she will soon be one of us and ready to search for the others..." the womanpromised aloud to the voice.

"I leave it to you, do your duty..." the voice died away leaving the armor-clad female alone in her chamber.

"Finally, I will get revenge on the seiryuu and susaku..." Maosi spoke aloud as she thought of her plans. A smile curved her lips once more as she closed her eyes and began to laugh. They would pay. They would all pay.


	6. Into the book! Part II

**Chapter Five**

Miaka's mouth had fallen open and Yui's eyes had gone wide. "She . . . but how? The book was supposed to be closed! There are no more stories to be told!"

Yui rushed forward to pick up the book. It had a strange new glowing symbol on the cover. It gave Yui a bad feeling…

She handed the book to Miaka. When Miaka's eyes widened, she knew the symbol was new to Miaka too. "She went in…" Yui's voice was incredulous. "Rika somehow went into the Universe of the Four Gods." She abruptly turned to Ryo.

"Yes, she went in." The man who had been nearly incoherent moments before had gathered himself together. "I-I couldn't stop her..." Ryo looked up at the two girls who were staring at him curiously. He stared right back, "You were in there too. Bad things are going  
to happen all because of me... Rika's gone..."

Ryo's eyes remained on where she had just been, but they were blank, emotionless. He was still in shock. "I saw her. I saw this, last night, in a dream. I saw her, but I couldn't stop her."

"Let me get this straight." Yui needed to figure this out. She approached Ryo, crouching down to look in his eyes. "You saw this. Did you see anything else?"

"Yes." Ryo's eyes turned to hers and they were filled with fear. "I saw her inside. I saw her in pain. I saw her with a woman with cold eyes, evil eyes." Thinking of this seemed to snap him out of his funk. He abruptly stood, accepting his failure. "You must go in after her. You and Miaka. I thought I could change fate and I failed... so you must follow."

"What?!" Miaka had still been trying to figure out how Rika had gotten in. "We have to go inside again?! No way! "

"Yes, you do." The authority in Ryo's voice was what did it.

Yui snatched the book up and approached Miaka. "Let's go."

"B-but what about Taka?!" Miaka sputtered this. An answer sounded in her mind.

"I will get him to follow you." He then added verbally at Miaka's surprised look, "I get visions and I'm psychic okay." He held up a hand to ward off Yui's questions. "And no, I don't know how I got these powers, I've had them since birth. For the past few months, I've been seeing things about this book. I saw what happened to you guys before and I've been seeing what will happen to Courtney. It was so strange that I didn't believe it would actually happen. I was wrong. I've always been able to read minds, I accepted that as a kid, but the dreams… I never knew they were coming true."

"And the strangeness ensues," Yui muttered.

"How cool! You can see things and talk with your mind!" Miaka was her usual joyful oblivious self in the face of danger.

"Not now Miaka…" Yui paused and took a breath, knowing what they had to do. "We have to go into the book now."

Miaka's nervous eyes shifted to Ryo, "Will you tell Taka what happened?"  
"Yes, get going. I'll do the best I can getting help." He reached out to touch Miaka's arm for a moment first. "Everything will be okay. I'll do all in my power to make it that way. Go."

Miaka and Yui both nodded and then held the book together. Opening it, they looked at the first page. Then, with flashes of red and blue light, they were gone. Unsurprised now, Ryo grabbed the book and closed his eyes, searching for Taka's mind. Finding it, he sent a message. That was all he could do for the moment.

------------

Across town, Taka and Liam were sitting on a bench, wondering where on Earth the girls were. "What's taking them so long?!" Liam was getting very impatient.

"I'm sure they'll be here soon." Taka was always the voice of reason. "Miaka probably just got hungry." When Liam laughed, Taka's own fears eased. He hated not knowing where Miaka was. She always seemed to get into trouble without him. And he had been having a strange feeling all day. He felt… like something bad was going to happen. And his body felt tingly, like it had when he had last had his powers.

Suddenly a strange voice entered his mind. "Taka?"

Taka jumped up from the bench, exclaiming, "What the hell?!"

"Calm down, Taka. It's Ryo. I'm psychic, I'll explain later. Miaka and Yui just went into the Universe of the Four Gods after Rika who was sucked in. They need your help! Hurry!"

This message finished, Taka turned and started off without a word to the bewildered Liam.

"Woah! What's your hurry?" Liam had to race to keep up with his taller friend. "Where are we going?"

"Liam." Where to start, Taka thought, keeping up his pace. "There are some things you don't know about Miaka, Yui and I." How to explain!

"I figured that one out fairly quickly. You guys, Keisuke and Tetsuya are always huddling together." Liam grinned and punched his arm slightly. "What is it? And why are you walking so fast?"

"Miaka, Yui and Rika are in trouble. I have to go save them. They are in trouble as a result of our past, of our experience with a certain book in the National Library." Taka hung a left at the previously mentioned library, running up the steps. At the top he paused, turning to Liam who almost tripped trying to stop. "Your friend Ryo appears to be mixed up in it this time." He then continued his pace through the library, to the back room, without saying another word.

Liam kept pace, holding back his questions. When they entered a tiny dusty room, he was surprised to see Ryo there, holding a book. "Ryo?"

Surprising Liam, Taka marched right up to Ryo and grabbed him by his shirt. "What exactly are you?"

Ryo spoke calmly, in control now. "I'm just a simple human. I just have a little extra. I was born with the ability to use telekinesis and telepathy and I also get visions. I have seen what you went through the last time in this book. I also saw some of what Rika would be going through." The scene flashed into his mind again, making him shut his eyes and pain crossed his face. When he next spoke his voice was tinged with pain, "I tried to stop her, but it didn't work." He let out a sigh as Taka dropped him, as a result of the reminder of his failure. "So I sent Yui and Miaka in after her and promised I'd send you too." He held out the book. Then he looked up into Taka's eyes. "They need you, Taka or should I say, Susaku warrior Tamahome. Your power has reawakened and could put you in danger here anyways."

Taka took the book, studying Ryo. Then he said, "You'll need to contact Keisuke and Tetsuya." Ryo nodded and Taka opened the book.

A confused Liam had to shield his eyes as a blinding red light filled the room. A moment later it was gone and the book fell to the floor. Liam looked around. Taka was gone. "Where did he go?"

Ryo slowly picked up the book. "He went in here." He held up the book. At Liam's confused look, he sighed. "Here, I'll get Tets and Keisuke and they can help explain."

He was silent for a moment, his eyes closed. Then he opened his eyes and a faint smile played over his lips. "They're more skeptical than Taka." He gestured to a chair. "Have a seat. It won't be long."

Liam sat, sending distrustful looks toward Ryo. What the hell was going on here?


End file.
